
"The same came to Jesus by night,
and said unto him, Rabbi, we know
that thou art a teacher come from
God" (John 3:2).
The new birth, a complete change in
the direction of one's life as a result of
a unique, unforgettable experience
—such is the education offered by the
Teacher come from God. Jesus'
answer to Nicodemus' recognition of
His mission as a teacher was
forthright. It was a clear, unmistakable
objective: "Ye must be born again."
A personal experience in
conversion—from the flesh to the
spirit, from darkness to light, from sin
to holiness—is the prime
requirement, the credential, of the
Christian teacher. "Art thou a master
of Israel, and knowest not these
things? Verily, verily I say unto thee,
We speak that we do know, and testify
that we have seen" (verses 10, 11).
These were Jesus' telling comments to
Nicodemus. They apply today to
parents, to college professors, to
Sabbath School class leaders, and
academy and church school teachers.
They apply to every Christian whose
influence over others, even though
unconscious, makes him a teacher.
(But if the blind lead the blind, both
fall in the ditch together.)
Have you forgotten? "You were
spiritually dead through your sins and
failures, all the time that you followed
this world's ideas of living, and obeyed
the evil ruler of the spiritual
realm—who is indeed fully operative
today in those who disobey God. We
all lived like that in the past, and
followed the desires and imaginings of
our lower nature, being in fact under
the wrath of God by nature, like
everyone else. But even though we
were dead in our sins God, who is rich
in mercy, because of the great love he
had for us, gave us life together with
Christ—it is, remember, by grace that
you are saved—and has lifted us to
take our place with him in Christ Jesus
in the Heavens. Thus he shows for all
the ages to come the tremendous
generosity of the grace and kindness
he has expressed towards us in Christ
Jesus." "Do not lose sight of the fact
that you were born 'gentiles', known
by those whose bodies were
circumcised by the hand of man as 'the
uncircumcised' " (Eph. 2:1-7, 11,
Phillips).
"God . . . gave us life together with
Christ." Jesus Himself expressed this
objective when He said, "I am come
that they might have life, and that they
might have it more abundantly" (John
10:10). The abundance is one of
quality and of quantity. "Thou hast
given him power over all flesh, that he
should give eternal life to as many as
thou hast given him. And this is life
eternal, that they might know thee the
only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom
thou hast sent" (John 17:2, 3).
In a world where "your iniquities
have separated between you and your
God" (lsa. 59:2), Jesus' purpose was
"that they all may be one; as thou,
Father, art in me, and I in thee, that
they also may be one in us" (John
17:21). The whole intercessory prayer
of John 17 is a declaration of
purpose—a detailing of the kind of
new life He envisioned for His
disciples, then and now—"that they
might have my joy fulfilled in
themselves" (verse 13), "that they also
might be sanctified through the
truth"(verse 19), "that they may be
made perfect in one, and that the
world may know that thou hast sent
me, and hast loved them" (verse 23),
"that they ... be with me where I am;
that they may behold my glory, which
thou hast given me" (verse 24), "that
the love wherewith thou hast loved me
may be in them" (verse 26).
DAILY HIGHLIGHTS
1.
Teacher From God
(John 3:2)
2.
New Birth
(John 3:3)
3.
Sanctification
(John 17:17)
4.
Unity
(John 17:21)
S. Love
(John 13:34)
6. This World and the Next
(John 14:1-3)